McDonald's Corporation is an American fast food company, founded in 1940 as a restaurant

operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They
rechristened their business as a hamburger stand, and later turned the company into a franchise,
with the Golden Arches logo being introduced in 1953 at a location in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1955, Ray
Kroc, a businessman, joined the company as a franchise agent and proceeded to purchase the
chain from the McDonald brothers. McDonald's had its original headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois,
but moved its global headquarters to Chicago in early 2018.[5][6][7]
McDonald's is the world's largest restaurant chain by revenue,[8] serving over 69 million customers
daily in over 100 countries[9] across 37,855 outlets as of 2018.[10][11] Although McDonald's is best
known for its hamburgers, cheeseburgers and french fries, they also feature chicken
products, breakfast items, soft drinks, milkshakes, wraps, and desserts. In response to changing
consumer tastes and a negative backlash because of the unhealthiness of their food,[12] the company
has added to its menu salads, fish, smoothies, and fruit. The McDonald's Corporation revenues
come from the rent, royalties, and fees paid by the franchisees, as well as sales in company-
operated restaurants. According to two reports published in 2018, McDonald's is the world's second-
largest private employer with 1.7 million employees (behind Walmart with 2.3 million employees).[13][14]

Contents

 1History
 2Corporate overview
o 2.1Facts and figures
o 2.2Finance
o 2.3Business model
o 2.4Headquarters
o 2.5Board of directors
o 2.6Global operations
 3Products
o 3.1International menu variations
 4Restaurants
o 4.1Types of restaurants
 4.1.1McDrive
 4.1.2McCafé
 4.1.3"Create Your Taste" restaurants
 4.1.4Other
 4.1.5Special diet
 4.1.6Playgrounds
 4.1.7McDonald's Next
o 4.22006 redesign
o 4.3Smoking ban
 5Treatment of employees
o 5.1Automation
o 5.2Wages
 5.2.1Strikes
o 5.3Occupation
o 5.4Working conditions
 6Animal welfare standards
 7Marketing and advertising
 o 7.1Space exploration
o 7.2Children's advertising
o 7.3Sports awards and honors
 8Charity
o 8.1McHappy Day
o 8.2McDonald's Monopoly donation
o 8.3McRefugee
 9Criticism
o 9.1Company responses to criticism
o 9.2Environmental record
o 9.3Legal cases
 9.3.1European Union
 9.3.2Malaysia
 9.3.3Australia
 9.3.4United Kingdom
 9.3.5United States
o 9.4Use of genetically modified food
o 9.5Traces of faeces
 10See also
 11References
 12Further reading
 13External links

History
Main article: History of McDonald's

The oldest operating McDonald's restaurant is the third one built, opened in 1953. It is located at 10207
Lakewood Blvd. at Florence Ave. in Downey, California (at 33.9471°N 118.1182°W)

The siblings Richard and Maurice McDonald opened in 1940 the first McDonald's at 1398 North E
Street at West 14th Street in San Bernardino, California (at 34.1255°N 117.2946°W) but it was not
the McDonald's recognizable today; Ray Kroc made changes to the brothers' business to modernize
it. The brothers introduced the "Speedee Service System" in 1948, putting into expanded use the
principles of the modern fast-food restaurant that their predecessor White Castle had put into
practice more than two decades earlier.[citation needed] The original mascot of McDonald's was a chef hat
on top of a hamburger who was referred to as "Speedee". In 1962, the Golden Arches replaced
Speedee as the universal mascot. The symbol, Ronald McDonald, was introduced in 1965. The
clown, Ronald McDonald, appeared in advertising to target their audience of children.[15]
Logo from 1940 until 1948

Logo from 1948 until 1953

Logo from 1953 until 1960

On May 4, 1961, McDonald's first filed for a U.S. trademark on the name "McDonald's" with the
description "Drive-In Restaurant Services", which continues to be renewed. By September 13,
McDonald's, under the guidance of Ray Kroc, filed for a trademark on a new logo—an overlapping,
double-arched "M" symbol. But before the double arches, McDonald's used a single arch for the
architecture of their buildings. Although the "Golden Arches" logo appeared in various forms, the
present version was not used until November 18, 1968, when the company was favored a U.S.
trademark.
The present corporation credits its founding to franchised businessman Ray Kroc in on April 15,
1955. This was in fact the ninth opened McDonald's restaurant overall, although this location was
destroyed and rebuilt in 1984. Kroc later purchased the McDonald brothers' equity in the company
and begun the company's worldwide reach. Kroc was recorded as being an aggressive business
partner, driving the McDonald brothers out of the industry.
Kroc and the McDonald brothers fought for control of the business, as documented in Kroc's
autobiography. The San Bernardino restaurant was eventually torn down (1971, according to Juan
Pollo) and the site was sold to the Juan Pollo chain in 1976. This area now serves as headquarters
for the Juan Pollo chain, and a McDonald's and Route 66 museum.[16] With the expansion of
McDonald's into many international markets, the company has become a symbol of globalization and
the spread of the American way of life. Its prominence has also made it a frequent topic of public
debates about obesity, corporate ethics, and consumer responsibility.

Corporate overview
Facts and figures

Corporate logo used from 1960 until November 18, 1968

Corporate logo used from November 18, 1968 until 2003

Corporate logo used from 2003 to 2006

By 1993, McDonald's had sold more than 100 billion hamburgers. The once widespread restaurant signs that
boasted the number of sales, such as this one in Harlem, were left at "99 billion" because there was space for
only two digits.

The McDonald's in Northport, Alabama commemorates U.S. President Ronald Reagan's visit

McDonald's restaurants are found in 120 countries and territories around the world and serve 68
million customers each day.[17][18] McDonald's operates 37,855 restaurants worldwide, employing
more than 210,000 people as of the end of 2018.[10][11][17] There are currently a total of 2,770 company-
owned locations and 35,085 franchised locations, which includes 21,685 locations franchised to
conventional franchisees, 7,225 locations licensed to developmental licensees, and 6,175 locations
licensed to foreign affiliates.[10][11]
Focusing on its core brand, McDonald's began divesting itself of other chains it had acquired during
the 1990s. The company owned a majority stake in Chipotle Mexican Grill until October 2006, when
McDonald's fully divested from Chipotle through a stock exchange.[19][20] Until December 2003, it also
owned Donatos Pizza, and it owned a small share of Aroma Café from 1999 to 2001. On August 27,
2007, McDonald's sold Boston Market to Sun Capital Partners.[21]
Notably, McDonald's has increased shareholder dividends for 25 consecutive years,[22] making it one
of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats.[23][24] The company is ranked 131st on the Fortune 500 of the
largest United States corporations by revenue.[25] In October 2012, its monthly sales fell for the first
time in nine years.[26] In 2014, its quarterly sales fell for the first time in seventeen years, when its
sales dropped for the entirety of 1997.[27]
In the United States, it is reported that drive-throughs account for 70 percent of
sales.[28][29] McDonald's closed down 184 restaurants in the United States in 2015, which was 59
more than what they planned to open.[30][31] This move was also the first time McDonald's had a net
decrease in the number of locations in the United States since 1970.[31]
The McDonalds on-demand delivery concept, which began in 2017 with a partnership with Uber
Eats and added DoorDash in 2019, now accounts for up to 3% of all business as of 2019.[32]

Finance
For the fiscal year 2017, McDonalds reported earnings of US$5.2 billion, with an annual revenue of
US$22.8 billion, a decrease of 7.3% over the previous fiscal cycle. McDonald's shares traded at over
$145 per share, and its market capitalization was valued at over US$134.5 billion in September
2018.

Total
Revenue Net income Price per
Assets
Year in mil. in mil. Share Locations[33] Employees
in mil.
USD$ USD$ in USD$
USD$

2005[34] 19,117 2,602 29,989 21.56

2006[34] 20,895 3,544 28,975 25.39 31,046

2007[34] 22,787 2,395 29,392 36.05 31.377

2008[35] 23,522 4,313 28,462 42.50 31,967

2009[36] 22,745 4,551 30,225 43.43 32,478

2010[37] 24,075 4,946 31,975 55.49 32,737

2011[38] 27,006 5,503 32,990 67.77 33,510

 2012[39] 27,567 5,465 35,387 76.81 34,480

2013[40] 28,106 5,586 36,626 83.45 35,429 440,000

2014[41] 27,441 4,758 34,227 85.46 36,258 420,000

2015[42] 25,413 4,529 37,939 92.10 36,525 420,000

2016[43] 24,622 4,687 31,024 113.79 36,899 375,000

2017[44] 22,820 5,192 33,804 145.12 37,241 235,000

Business model

Ray Kroc joined the chain in 1954 and built it into a global franchise, making it the most successful fast food
corporation in the world

The company currently owns all the land, which is valued at an estimated $16 to $18 billion, on
which its restaurants are situated.[citation needed] The company earns a significant portion of its revenue
from rental payments from franchisees. These rent payments rose 26 percent between 2010 and
2015, accounting for one-fifth of the company's total revenue at the end of the period.[45] In recent
times, there have been calls to spin off the company's US holdings into a potential real estate
investment trust, but the company announced at its investor conference on November 10, 2015, that
this would not happen. The CEO, Steve Easterbrook discussed that pursuing the REIT option would
pose too large a risk to the company's business model.[46]
The United Kingdom and Ireland business model is different from the U.S, in that fewer than 30
percent of restaurants are franchised, with the majority under the ownership of the company.
McDonald's trains its franchisees and management at Hamburger University located at its Chicago
headquarters.[47][48] In other countries, McDonald's restaurants are operated by joint ventures of
McDonald's Corporation and other, local entities or governments.[49]
According to Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser (2001), nearly one in eight workers in the U.S.
have at some time been employed by McDonald's. Employees are encouraged by McDonald's Corp.
to maintain their health by singing along to their favorite songs in order to relieve stress,
attending church services in order to have a lower blood pressure, and taking two vacations annually
in order to reduce risk for myocardial infarction.[50] Fast Food Nation also states that McDonald's is
the largest private operator of playgrounds in the U.S., as well as the single largest purchaser of
beef, pork, potatoes, and apples. The selection of meats McDonald's uses varies to some extent
based on the culture of the host country.[51]

Headquarters
On June 13, 2016, McDonald's confirmed plans to move its global headquarters to Chicago's West
Loop neighborhood in the Near West Side. The 608,000-square-foot structure was built on the
former site of Harpo Productions (where the Oprah Winfrey Show and several other Harpo
productions taped) and opened on June 4, 2018.[5][6]
The McDonald's former headquarters complex, McDonald's Plaza, is located in Oak Brook, Illinois. It
sits on the site of the former headquarters and stabling area of Paul Butler, the founder of Oak
Brook.[52] McDonald's moved into the Oak Brook facility from an office within the Chicago Loop in
1971.[53]

Board of directors
As of January 2019, the board of directors had the following members:[54]

 Enrique Hernandez Jr., non-executive chairman. Also president and CEO of Inter-Con Security
 Lloyd H. Dean, president and CEO of Dignity Health
 Stephen J. Easterbrook, president and CEO of McDonald's
 Robert A. Eckert, operating partner of Friedman Fleischer & Lowe
 Margaret H. Georgiadis, CEO of Ancestry.com
 Jeanne P. Jackson, CEO of MSP Capital
 Richard H. Lenny, non-executive of Conagra Brands, Inc.
 John J. Mulligan, executive vice president and COO of Target Corporation
 Sheila A. Penrose, non-executive chairman of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorpoated
 John W. Rogers Jr., chairman and CEO of Ariel Investments, LLC
 Miles D. White, chairman and CEO of Abbott Laboratories
 Andrew J. McKenna, chairman emeritus. Also chairman emeritus of Schwarz Supply Source
On March 1, 2015, after being chief brand officer of McDonald's and its former head in the UK and
northern Europe, Steve Easterbrook became CEO, succeeding Don Thompson, who stepped down
on January 28, 2015.